Awake at Dawn

Chapter Seventeen

  Burnett made Kylie go over what happened several times. Then he asked specific questions. "You said the rogue vampire was bloody. Did it look like fresh blood? How much time passed from when you saw the girls to when he appeared?"

  Then Burnett asked the same questions in a slightly different way. At one time she'd have thought he was trying to catch her in a lie, but now she suspected his intent was to make sure she wasn't forgetting something and hoping a slightly different question might lead her to remember some minor detail that could be useful. Problem was, Kylie didn't want to remember. She longed to forget, to wipe it from her memory forever. And seriously, what else could she tell him that might be helpful?

  "Could you describe the blood to me?" Burnett straddled a straightbacked chair in front of Kylie, reminding her of their first interrogation. Only this time she sat on the sofa with Holiday beside her.

  "I already did. " She felt her patience being pulled like a tight rubber band.

  "One more time. " His tone demanded obedience.

  It was the tone that finally made Kylie snap. "You know who did this.

  You know who his victims were. So is any of this really necessary?"

  She gritted her teeth and tried not to start crying again.

  "We decide what's necessary," Selynn answered in her haughty tone, moving in behind Burnett.

  Kylie glared up at the werewolf, not trying to hide her contempt.

  Selynn's tone annoyed Kylie even more than Burnett's harsh tenor. At least with Burnett, she heard real concern. With Selynn, it seemed to be all about power. She liked having it and enjoyed using it. "You think we did this, don't you?" Kylie asked Selynn.

  "I think-"

  "Stop. " Burnett frowned at Selynn, then glanced back at Kylie. "Kylie, I know you didn't do this. And I know this isn't easy. However, blood patterns might tell us if he was killing for sport or for food. "

  His statement made her stomach churn. "And why does that make a difference? Those girls are dead no matter what his reasons were for killing them. "

  "I think she's had enough questions. " Holiday placed her hand on Kylie's wrist, offering moral support and a strong surge of calm. The rush of peaceful energy slowed Kylie's heartbeat and lessened the tightness in her chest. Not that it could make it all go away. Kylie didn't think that power existed.

  Burnett looked at Holiday, then at Kylie. "It won't change what happened. But right now, we need all the information we can get on this creep to be able to catch him. To stop him before he does this again. "

  Burnett's words shifted around inside her head and pulled at her conscience.

  Two girls had died. Violently died. Was it too much to ask for Kylie to suffer through a few more minutes of questions? No, it wasn't. Taking in a breath, she sat up straighter.

  Holiday stiffened. "For a vampire, your hearing is really bad. I said she's had enough. "

  "It's okay. " Kylie turned her palm over and gave the camp leader's hand a squeeze. "If it helps stop this guy, I can do it. " But she didn't let go of Holiday's hand.

  Ten minutes later, apparently when Burnett felt he'd drawn every detail about the incident he could out of her, he stood up and looked down at her. "Thank you, Kylie. I know this wasn't easy. "

  She nodded and after she let herself breathe in and out a couple of times, she decided it was her turn to ask the questions. "Do you think he wanted it to look as if we'd killed these girls? Like they tried to frame someone at the camp for killing the animals?"

  Burnett shook his head. "No. There's nothing to lead us to conclude that. "

  "Do you think . . . do you think he followed us into town?"

  He considered her question for a second. "No, I don't. I think it was a coincidence that he ran across you. "

  Holiday squeezed Kylie's hand. "I told you, this isn't your fault. "

  "No, it isn't," Burnett said. "This has nothing to do with you, Kylie. "

  "Then how come it feels so . . . personal?" Kylie asked. "I mean, he keeps showing back up. At the park and then last Friday. I didn't actually see him then, but I'm assuming it was him. And even after that I . . . I've felt as if someone was following me. "

  "When did you feel this?" Burnett asked.

  "Yesterday morning when I came to the office before breakfast. At first, I thought it was the wolf but-"

  "Wolf?" both Burnett and Selynn said at the same time. While Burnett looked concerned, Selynn immediately started twitching, trying to read Kylie again. It took everything Kylie had not to reach up and cover her forehead. Maybe even give the woman the finger.

  "When was this?" Burnett asked.

  "A couple of days ago," Holiday answered. "It wasn't a werewolf. Kylie said it appeared to be semi-tame. Nonthreatening. "

  "Was it a shifter?" Burnett asked.

  "I'm . . . not sure. But I know it wasn't Perry. " Kylie hesitated and then recalled what this conversation was really about. "But the wolf isn't important. Two girls are dead and I . . . I feel as if it's somehow my fault. I think he was after me, not them. "

  Burnett dropped back down in the chair facing her. "I can understand how you might feel that way. But if he was out to hurt you, he could have done so the other night in the woods. I don't think this is personal. Not toward you. To the camp as a whole . . . maybe. "

  "Then why does he keep coming to see me? It doesn't sound like a coincidence. "

  Burnett frowned. "It's not a coincidence. You put yourself in situations that offered him the best opportunity with the least of amount of risk. And the first time, he didn't come to you. You had gone to the wildlife park where the Blood Brothers were. And if he was here the other night, and we're not sure it was him, then he probably spotted you when you ran off in the woods and saw it as an opportunity. And today, he was probably . . . hunting when he sensed other supernaturals in town.

  Again, you were the one alone in the dressing room. He took advantage of it. "

  And got himself an eyeful, Kylie thought. "But you even said that if he'd wanted to kill me the other night, he could have but he didn't even try. So what did he want with me then?"

  Burnett hesitated. "I think he wanted to send a message to the camp. To let us know that the gang hasn't moved on. I'm sure the arrest of several of their gang members has dented their egos. If they pulled out right away, it would appear as if they lacked courage. If they stay around, they at least save face. I'm sure he realized that killing you would have brought too much trouble down on the gang. "

  Kylie tried to grasp exactly what Burnett was saying. "But he killed those girls. Are you saying that didn't cause trouble? That doesn't make sense. "

  Burnett looked at Holiday as if asking for her help.

  Holiday squeezed Kylie's hand. "When a supernatural kills another supernatural, it's easier to deal with the offense. We have our own justice system. "

  "And when they kill a human? What happens?" Don't let them say "nothing," Kylie thought. Please God, don't let them say "nothing. " She might be part supernatural, but she was still part human.

  "That's part of the FRU's job," Burnett said. "But as you might guess, it can make getting justice tricky. "

  Kylie felt her shoulders getting tighter. "Are you telling me that he's actually going to get away with this?"

  "No. " Burnett said in a deeper tone. "You have my word, Kylie, I will do everything I can to make sure this guy pays for this. "

  Exactly how Burnett intended to make him pay wasn't clear. Nor was Kylie sure she even wanted to know. But something about the way he said those words told her this wasn't a promise he made lightly. And for that, she was grateful.

  That night, the camp leaders held a meeting of all the campers at the dining hall and served up both pizza and sage advice. Burnett spoke about bei
ng extra careful. "Stay on the main paths and trails and don't go through the woods without having someone with you," he explained. "Depending on how dense the trees are or how the wind is blowing, an intruder's scent could go undetected. "

  Della shot a grin at Kylie and then turned back to Burnett. "Maybe you should cancel parents weekend," she suggested.

  Burnett looked at Della. "That's over two weeks away. I hope to have this problem resolved by then. "

  "Hey, can't blame a girl for trying," Della muttered.

  "I have a meeting with the High Council next week," Burnett said. "I'm hoping I'll get some assistance to deal with what happened here. "

  Kylie leaned in closer to Della. "Who are the High Council?"

  "Sort of like the Senate, made up of a bunch of elders from the different species. " Della smiled. "I just learned about it this afternoon. Chris did a talk about it in our vamp meeting. "

  "A Senate? I didn't think all the species got along," Kylie said. "They don't. But neither do the Democrats and Republicans and they still meet. "

  "I guess so," Kylie said, and then another question popped up. "What kind of assistance will they offer us?"

  "Depends. Chris said the council has to vote to even look into the case. "

  "Vote? Two girls murdered, how can they say no?"

  Della shrugged. "You have to remember that not all the elders are in line with the government's way of thinking. "

  "You mean some of them are rogue?"

  Della nodded. "According to Chris, most of the elders respect the government, but don't want to be controlled by it. So they follow some of the rules, but not all of them. " One of Della's eyebrows rose upward.

  Kylie shook her head. She had enough trouble trying to understand human politics-did she really have it in her to grasp this, too? "If they take the case, then what?"

  "They either allow the council of the accused species to do the punishing and deal with things or they turn the guy over to the FRU. And I don't want to think about what happens to them then. "

  "Me, either," Kylie admitted.

  Della glanced over to the door and her mood seemed to have changed. "I'm going to head on back to the cabin. I've got some stuff I want to do. "

  "What kind of stuff?" Kylie remembered the obituaries she'd found on the computer screen.

  "Just stuff," Della snapped.

  Kylie leaned in. "You could never do anything like this. "

  Della glared at her. "I'll see you later. "

  "Do you want me to walk with you?" Kylie asked, remembering Burnett's caution to stay together whenever possible.

  "Are you kidding me?" Della asked. "If something attacked, I'd just end up having to protect both of us. "

  "Hey . . . I'm not so helpless anymore. " After thinking about what those girls might have gone through, Kylie wasn't so upset about her new found strength, either.

  "Just because you broke one door in, and don't lag behind when hiking through the woods, doesn't mean crap. " She grinned, letting Kylie know she was mostly teasing. "I'm fine. I'll see you later. "

  Della took off, and Kylie watched her go. Her heart ached for Della. Then she saw her vampire friend turn and give a couple of boys the finger.

  No doubt they'd probably said something rude and crude. "Hey. " Holiday stopped beside Kylie. "Is Della okay?"

  "I hope so. " Kylie realized that ever since they'd returned from town, the distance that had seemed to come between her and Holiday because of the whole Burnett issue had vanished. Had they bridged a gap, and could Kylie keep it from reappearing?

  "Are you doing okay?" Holiday asked.

  "I've been better," Kylie said honestly. "I just keep thinking about those girls. "

  "Maybe Sunday we can take a walk to the falls," Holiday said. "That sounds good. " The thought of going there with someone who could feel the same thing Kylie did seemed nice.

  Right then, Burnett looked over at them and Kylie saw Holiday notice it, too. Kylie cringed, worrying that Holiday would remember she was mad at her.

  "I should apologize," Holiday said, obviously reading Kylie's emotions again. "I . . . I overreacted about the whole thing with Burnett. "

  Shocked, Kylie looked at her. "No you didn't. I was wrong to say anything to him. "

  "Maybe, but your heart was in the right place. When we care about people, we sometimes overstep our grounds. I of all people should know that. I'm a famous overstepper. " Holiday's voice tightened. "Today when Burnett first came to me and said they had two teens down and I thought . . . Well, let's just say our issue really felt stupid. " Holiday put her arm around Kylie and gave her a sweet, sisterly hug.

  "Thank you. " Kylie fought the swell of emotion in her throat. "But you are going to make me cry. "

  Holiday looked up toward Burnett. "Hey, if you cry, maybe it will send him running again. If I knew all it took were a few tears to get him to leave, I'd have been crying for the last seven weeks. "

  Kylie grinned and when she looked up at Burnett, she saw Selynn walk up to him and say something. "What's she still doing here?"

  "Don't know for sure," Holiday said in a whisper. "I'm sure she wants something. And I bet it starts with a B and is tall, dark, and goodlooking. "

  Burnett listened to something Selynn said and then walked out the door with her. "And she may have just got it," Holiday said, her voice revealing rejection.

  Kylie hesitated to ask, but then it just popped out. "Are those two . . . you know?"

  "Dirtying up the sheets?" Holiday said.

  "Yeah. " Kylie mentally added that to Della's list of ways to say getting it on.

  "This afternoon he came into my office and made the announcement, 'I know how things looked between Selynn and me. And it's not that way. Or at least not anymore. '"

  "So they were together and they broke up?" Kylie asked.

  "He said they ended it two months ago. That they were never serious. "

  Kylie raised her eyebrows. "And how long ago was it that you met him?"

  "Two months," she said.

  "Hmm," Kylie said.

  "Hmm, what?" Holiday asked.

  "Just a meaningless hmm," Kylie lied. "So what did you tell him?"

  "I told him that I didn't have a clue why he felt as if he needed to tell me about Selynn. "

  "Could he tell you were lying?" Kylie asked.

  "Yup," Holiday chuckled. They just stood there for a minute looking out at the crowd. "Any more info from the ghost lately?"

  "Nothing," Kylie said. "It scares me that . . . I've messed up somehow. "

  "I don't think that's it at all. She's probably trying to figure out how to tell you what she needs you to know. "

  "I hope so," Kylie said.

  Angry sounds exploded from across the room. "What did you call me?" a loud voice boomed. Kylie and Holiday looked up. Two werewolves stood nose-to-nose, about to go fist-to-fist.

  "My work is never done," Holiday said, and took off to break up the fight.

  Kylie watched her go-watched her calm the tempers of two very highspirited boys. After a few minutes of feeling a bit like a lone ranger, she spotted Miranda hanging with her witch sisters. She knew Miranda wouldn't mind if she joined them, but Kylie decided against it. Helen and Jonathon sat at a table playing chess. She could go watch Helen embarrass Jonathon again with her natural talent for chess, but for some the reason, the two seemed to be enjoying being alone.

  Another sweep of the room and Kylie found Derek. He leaned against a wall, arms crossed, watching her. A slow smile widened his lips. Something in his smile told her he could really use some company.

  She gave the room a quick check to see how many individuals could either smell her hormones or read her emotions. They were
everywhere.

  What to do? What to do?

  She glanced back at Derek, remembered how good it had felt when he'd held her those few minutes in the office, and she thought . . . what the hell. She started walking toward him.

  "Wanna go eat pizza in the moonlight?" Derek whispered in her ear when she stopped in front of him.

  Standing this close, she could smell his freshly showered skin. A vision of what he'd looked like standing in the buff wearing only a few water droplets filled her mind. She blinked the vision away.

  "Is that like dancing in the moonlight? It's supposed to be seductive. "

  She smiled and then bit her tongue. Why was it when she got within three feet of him, all she could think about was . . . him?

  He grinned. "It could be. With the right person. And the right pizza. "

  He laughed. "Hey, I'm hungry. "

  They got themselves two slices each of pizza and a couple of drinks and walked out of the dining hall.

  "I know the perfect place," he said as they left the chatter of voices and the air-conditioning behind in the dining hall. The night air was warm and smooth. He pointed to the two large, white rocking chairs at the front of the office. She followed him. She was just about to sit down when the phone in her pocket chimed.

  Sitting her drink down, she balanced her plate in one hand and pulled out her phone to check the number. She frowned when she saw her dad's number and she hit the off button.

  "Who was it?" Derek moved the second rocker over so they faced each other.

  "My dad . . . I mean, my stepdad," she corrected herself.

  "You still aren't talking to him?" Derek sat down and picked up a piece of pepperoni pizza and took a big bite.

  "Nooooo. " She stuffed her phone back in her pocket and dropped down in her rocker. Their knees touched and it felt nice.

  "Why not?" Derek asked between bites of pizza.

  Kylie stared at him. "Why would I want to talk to him?" She positioned the plate in her lap.

  He finished chewing and swallowed. "Because you care about him.

  Because up until the shit hit the fan with your parents' marriage, he was a pretty good dad. " He held up his finger. "You're the one that told me that. "

  "Yeah, but I didn't tell you to use it against me. " She picked up the slice of pizza and stared down at the oozing cheese. Her mouth watered and her stomach grumbled. Thankfully, she was finally hungry. For a while there, she thought the blood had ruined her for eating regular food.

  "I'm not using it against you. " He took a sip of his drink. "I'm just . . . trying to help. Because when you saw it was his number, your emotions went all lonely and sad. I felt them all the way to my gut. Maybe if you talked to him, you wouldn't have to feel that anymore. "

  "He cheated on my mom. " She fought back the slight annoyance she felt toward Derek and took a small bite of pizza. The spicy sauce along with the gooey cheese made her taste buds jump up and down.

  "That's just it," Derek said, taking another bite of his slice. "He cheated on your mom. Not you. "

  Kylie swallowed the pizza and frowned. "Why does everyone keep saying that as if his infidelity didn't affect me? It broke their marriage up. Nothing is the same for me anymore. "

  Derek studied her over the rim of his drink and started his rocker moving. "Maybe if you spoke with him, some of it would be the same. The relationship between you and him could be the same. "

  She dropped her pizza back on her plate, frustration chasing away her first sign of hunger in days. "You know, for a guy who won't even think about talking to his dad, you're a fine one to talk. I mean, you had a detective find your dad, and you still won't even contact him. "

  His jaw tightened. "And your point?"

  She narrowed her own eyes and steadied her stare at him. "My point is, back off, okay?"

  Derek scraped his feet on the porch, brought his rocker to a fast halt, and stared at her. "How far back do you want me to go? I'm already scared to even talk to you in public. Isn't that far enough?" Frustration filled his voice, but it was the hurt in his eyes that made her see reason.

  Why was she being such a B with an itch? "I'm sorry. " Kylie said. "I shouldn't have snapped at you. And I don't mean that you can't ever talk to me in public. I just . . . I'm just . . . I'm so moody. " Kylie remembered what Holiday had said about the mood swings in werewolves before the full moon. Was that why she was acting this way? She looked up at the dark navy sky and focused on what almost appeared to be a full moon. Come Monday she'd know, wouldn't she? When she glanced back at Derek, he'd continued eating. Not that he looked all that happy. He wouldn't even look at her. Her thoughts shifted from what might happen on Monday to the anger that had just passed between them.

  "Hey," she said to get his attention.

  When he looked up, his discontent showed more on his face.

  "I'm really sorry," she said again.

  He dropped what was left of his pizza back on his plate. "You shouldn't be," he muttered, and used the back of his hand to wipe his mouth. He closed his eyes for a second. "You're right. I wouldn't want you trying to tell me I needed to call my father. It's just. . . "

  "Just what?" she asked.

  "I feel everything you feel and it can be a tad overwhelming. "

  "Bad overwhelming?" she asked.

  "Not really," he said, and glanced away.

  "So we're okay? I'm forgiven for being a bitch?" she said in a soft, pleading voice.

  "I don't think you've hit the bitch mark yet. " He smiled. "But yeah, you're forgiven for being grumpy. " He set his plate on the porch and stood up. Bracketing his palms on the arms of the rocking chair, he leaned down and kissed her. The kiss wasn't overly sexy, but the soft way his lips brushed against hers had her heart swelling with emotion. Emotion that was as gooey as the cheese pizza she'd abandoned.

  "Mm. " He pulled back, smiling. "I don't know if it's you, or the pizza, but something tastes good. "

  She touched his cheek. "Will you still like me if I'm werewolf?"

  "What do you think?" His lips met hers again. This kiss came with a touch of his tongue and had her pulse racing even faster than its abnormally fast pace.

  But when he pulled back this time, he wasn't smiling. He didn't look happy.

  "What is it?" she asked.

  "Nothing. " He sat back down in his rocking chair.

  She looked at his expression through the moonlight. "I hate it when people do that. "

  "Do what?" he asked.

  "Say nothing, when it's sooo obvious that it's something. "

  He let go of a sigh. "Okay, if you must know. It just occurred to me that maybe I wouldn't be so thrilled if you turn out to be werewolf. "

  "Because I'll get all hairy?" Kylie asked.

  "No. " His expression darkened. "Because . . . because Lucas is werewolf. "